Neil deGrasse Tyson gives mother of 11-year-old (Annaliese) her first smile since she was tragically killed in Colorado

Neil deGrasse Tyson gives mother of 11-year-old Annaliese (“Anna”) the first smile she has had since her daughter was tragically killed

DENVER, COLORADO, UNITED STATES, April 4, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Neil deGrasse Tyson gives mother of 11-year-old Annaliese (“Anna”) the first smile she has had since her daughter was tragically killed when trying to catch her school bus where the study of astrophysics was her life’s dream. Anna wanted to be an astrophysicist from the time she was 6-year-old. Inspired by her personal hero Neil deGrasse Tyson. The very last program her mother allowed her to watch the night before she was killed was Cosmos.

Anna, who scored in the top 97% of mentally gifted minors nationwide had almost five intense years studying everything she could get her hands on about astrophysics.

Watch as Anna’s Mom explains her love for the science, her loss and what Colorado can do to make sure no other parents have to suffer the same loss as her family:

Anna’s Mom speaks out on this 3 minute video:¹ https://vimeo.com/693540912

When word of a young fan and aspiring astrophysicist reached Neil deGrasse Tyson he wrote this heartfelt post on her mother’s wall that brought Leandra tears of joy:

“The curiosity of children famously knows no bounds around the house, the backyard, the neighborhood. Any new place. But when that curiosity includes the universe itself, you’re in the presence of someone poised to change the world. To lose Annaliese at age 11, brimming with so much cosmic ambition, will forever leave me wondering what she might have accomplished as a grown-up kid. Grown-up kids are scientists, and anybody else who retains their childhood curiosity into adulthood. Of course, we will never know the answer to that question. But we do know the physics of cremation: the energy contents of her body, itself reduced to ash, actually enters Earth’s atmosphere. It ultimately escapes to space in the form of infrared energy, radiating in all directions at the speed of light filling the voids of the cosmos with her presence. At the moment I write this, Annaliese’s energy has extended a half-trillion miles into space more than 100-times the distance to Pluto. Though she will live in collective memories for all our lives, in the universe she lives for all eternity.

Respectfully Submitted, Neil deGrasse Tyson” - April 3, 2022 New York City

Leandra responded to what Neil wrote on her wall with this:

“First genuine smile this mama has had in a month, I’m so touched Neil deGrasse Tyson took the time out to do this for our diva! It has been my one request since losing her. Thank you! On her one month of being gone you just gave this family something to smile about. The way he wrote this and explained her physical transition is exactly why she admired him so deeply. “Leandra Backner

Anna’s Father Brandon and Mother Leandra had just traveled back from the funeral home where her daughter ashes were handed to her in this urn.

This week Colorado’s Lawmakers will have the chance to correct an oversight that accidently sent the SB22-085 to a commitee on State Veterans and Military Affairs. According to one of the four Prime co-sponsors for the bipartisan bill, Don Coram:

“With over 600 bills to consider in a single session and a shake up in the leadership just before the bill was assigned to its first commitee, sometimes honest mistakes can happen. Leroy Garcia, former President of the Senate accepted a new role to serve our country at the Pentagon. Garcia’s next job will be as Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Manpower and Reserve Affairs within the U.S. Department of Defense. Naturally, the committee that heard SB22-085 would not have a budget for a bill that will ultimately make Colorado the safest state in the nation to transport its students to school and home each day. I think the members were so impressed with the testimony of 14 of Colorado’s most respected School Safety and School Bus Transportation professionals sought a way to move the bill along in the only way it could (temporarily without funding). This week, the Senate will have the chance to restore the three year $13.5M funding which should save our state at least three times as much money in the reduction of accidents and provide priceless child and public safety technology that can be used free of charge by all 3 million Colorado adults.”

The Prime Co-Sponsors of the Bipartisan bill are Senate Education Chair Rachel Zenzinger, House Education Chair Barbara McLachlan and Transportation Committee members for the House and Senate Marc Catlin and Don Coram respectively.

Regarding changing the name of the bill from The Colorado Safe Student Protection Program to Anna’s Law, Anna’s mother simply added: “I have faith in my state, the state that provided an education that made my little girl so happy, she died trying to get to school. Now that we have a chance to see our lawmakers’ true colors, I have no doubt that Anna’s Law will become the benchmark for this state and every other state that follows Colorado’s example." -Leandra Backner

Please let Anna be the last to die and expedite this bill now before our two school bus accidents a day continue to add up.”

Watch an urgent call for action 3 min² https://vimeo.com/685348601

Ward Leber, Founder & CEO of Child Safety Network said: “We are all amazed at the strength of the Backners during their darkest hour to rally their support to protect other parents in Colorado. We have worked with the state’s leadership on school bus safety and security for the past three years and assembled the most credentialed group of facilitators ever made available to any state. This will ensure that Colorado will become the safest state in the nation to transport its 375,00 school bus riding students.

Learn all the bills benefits at www.csn.org/anna or watch this 10-minute video on the bill’s three-year history:
https://vimeo.com/681065965

Ward Leber
CSN
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WATCH NOW: A plea from Anna's mother at https://vimeo.com/693540912

¹ https://vimeo.com/693540912
² https://vimeo.com/685348601
³ https://vimeo.com/681065965